Dr Chris Barnard performs the world’s first human heart transplant | South African History Online South African History Online Home » Dr Chris Barnard performs the world’s first human heart transplant Dr Chris Barnard performs the world’s first human heart transplant Dr. Chris Barnard Source: Sunday, 3 December 1967 On 3 December 1967, South African doctor, Dr Christiaan (Chris) Barnard , performed the world's first human to human heart transplant at Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town. This extraordinary event which pushed the boundaries of science into the dawn of a new medical epoch took place inside Charles Saint Theatre at Groote Schuur Hospital. After a decade of heart surgery, Barnard and his gifted cardiothoracic team of thirty (which included his brother Marius), were well equipped to perform the nine hour long operation. The recipient was Louis Washkansky , a fifty three year old grocer with a debilitating heart condition. Washkansky received the heart of Denise Darvall, a young woman who was run over by a car on 2 December and had been declared brain dead after suffering serious brain damage.

Her father, Edward Darvall agreed to the donation of his daughter's heart and kidneys. The operation started shortly after midnight on a Saturday night and was completed the next morning just before 6 a.m. when the new heart in the chest of Louis Washkansky was electrically shocked into action. After regaining consciousness he was able to talk and on occasion, to walk but his condition deteriorated and died of pneumonia eighteen days after the heart transplant. Groote Schuur Hospital has set up the ‘Heart of Cape Town Museum’ which honours those who played a leading role in the surgical feat. Theatres A and B are the orginal theatres and have been recreated to display an authentic representation of the ground breaking operation. References: • Fischer, J. (2011) ‘Louis Washkansky’ from To Transplant and Beyond [online]. Available at [Accessed 04 November 2011] • Malan, M. (1968). Heart Transplant: The Story of Barnard and the "Ultimate In Cardiac Surgery. Johannesburg: Voortrekkerspers.

Christiaan Barnard, 78, Surgeon For First Heart Transplant, Dies - The New York Times The New York Times World |Christiaan Barnard, 78, Surgeon For First Heart Transplant, Dies Search Continue reading the main story Dr. Christiaan N. Barnard, the South African surgeon who performed the world's first human heart transplant in 1967, died yesterday in Cyprus. He was 78. Dr. Barnard suffered a fatal asthma attack in the morning after going for a swim at a coastal resort in Paphos, where he had been vacationing, The Associated Press said, citing a statement from the Christiaan Barnard Foundation. Dr. Barnard's first heart transplant patient, Louis Washkansky, lived only 18 days, though his second, Dr. Philip Blaiberg, lived more than 19 months. A medical circus followed as surgeons elsewhere tried the experimental operation with little success. Then with the development of more powerful antirejection drugs and additional experience, the heart transplant operation became standard. It has been performed an estimated 100,000 times around the world.

Today the procedure is carried out in 160 hospitals in the United States alone, with a one-year success rate of 85 to 90 percent and a five-year success rate of 75 percent. Continue reading the main story Other doctors had been preparing to perform a human heart transplant when Dr. Barnard, then 45, shocked the world on Dec. 3, 1967, by removing a patient's dying heart and replacing it with a healthy one taken from an accident victim at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town. Advertisement Continue reading the main story In the view of some experts, perhaps Dr. Barnard's most important medical contribution was his courage to proceed with a human heart transplant at a time when other surgeons who had performed the operation only on animals continued to hesitate to be the first to transplant a heart in a human. But to one heart transplant pioneer, Dr. Norman E. Shumway of Stanford University, Dr. Barnard's surgical feat was outweighed by his decision to choose as the first heart donor a brain-dead accident victim.

''It made the use of brain-dead victims acceptable for organ transplantation'' because at the time ''there was a terrible furor about the brain death issue in the United States,'' Dr. Shumway said in an interview yesterday. District attorneys had threatened to arrest surgeons who took organs from brain-dead individuals. So, Dr. Shumway said, brain surgeons ''at Stanford and other institutions would disconnect the patient from a respirator, continue their rounds and, 20 minutes later, when the patient's heart had stopped, declare the patient dead, which, of course, was ridiculous.'' ''Without Dr. Barnard's initial use of the brain-dead patient, we could not have gone ahead'' to make heart transplants a standard therapy, Dr. Shumway said. ''It was a monumental advance, more societal perhaps than medical, because it applied to all organ transplants.'' During apartheid, Dr. Barnard ignored many racial barriers in the country, including allowing mixed-race nurses in the operating room to treat white patients and transplanting the heart of a white woman into a black man. Dr.

Barnard condemned South Africa's racial policies while refusing to agree that the country's political system ought to be turned over to the black majority. At a news conference yesterday, Nelson Mandela, South Africa's first post-apartheid president, said Dr. Barnard ''was one of our main achievers'' who ''also has done very well in expressing his opinion on'' apartheid. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Dr. Barnard's surgical skill and daring catapulted him almost overnight into the role of international savant, and his views on almost everything from global politics to jogging were eagerly sought by heads of state, the United States Congress and the general public. Dr. Barnard, born to genteel poverty as the son of a wilderness missionary, clearly enjoyed the limelight. His tousled good looks, ready wit and ad libs only quickened his journey to fame. He was soon enrolled as a member of the jet set, became involved in a tempestuous affair with an international sex symbol, and then, at the age of 48, divorced his wife of 22 years and married the teen-age daughter of a multimillionaire. His third marriage, to Karin Barnard, ended earlier this year.

He is survived by five of his six children: Deidre, Christiaan, Frederick, Armin and Lara, and a brother, Marius. ''Any man who says he doesn't like applause and recognition is either a fool or a liar,'' Dr. Barnard once said in discussing the pressures of public life. ''You learn from mistakes, but success gives you the courage to go on and do even more.'' Christiaan Neethling Barnard was born on Nov. 8, 1922, in the hamlet of Beaufort West in the arid wilderness of the Cape Province, to Adam Hendrik Barnard and the former Maria Elisabeth de Swart. His father was a Dutch Reformed minister who served as a missionary to racially mixed people and as such was all but shunned by many whites. The minister's salary was never more than $750 a year, yet he managed to provide for a family with four sons, sending three through college. Please verify you're not a robot by clicking the box. Invalid email address. Please re-enter. You must select a newsletter to subscribe to. Sign Up Privacy Policy It was his mother, Dr.

Barnard often said, who instilled in him and his brothers the belief that they could do anything they set their minds to -- and do it well. Young Christiaan ran a record mile in his bare feet; he won a school tennis championship with a borrowed racquet and cardboard covering the holes in his sneakers, he studied by rural firelight and was at the top of his class. After receiving a medical degree from the University of Cape Town in 1946, Dr. Barnard worked for two years as a general practitioner in a small farming village, then returned to the Cape Town Medical School to study birth defects and diseases affecting the bowel. In 1955 he went to Minneapolis to study general surgery with Dr. Owen H. Wangensteen at the University of Minnesota. In his first weeks there he was so short of funds that, he said, he had to mow lawns, wash cars and do other odd jobs to obtain meal money. Dr. Barnard arrived in Minneapolis just as the field of open heart surgery was developing, spurred by the new technologies that produced such equipment as heart-lung machines. After being invited to lend a hand with the device one day, Dr.

Barnard decided to take further training at the Medical College of Virginia to become a heart surgeon in South Africa. Advertisement Continue reading the main story He spent additional years conducting experimental surgery on animals in Cape Town and assembling a surgical team, which included his brother, Dr. Marius Barnard, before he felt that he was ready to ask Mr. Washkansky in November 1967 to become the first recipient. Several potential donors were considered, and the 30-member surgical team was alerted several times, only to be stopped for various technical reasons. On Dec. 2, Denise Darvall, a 25-year old accounting-machine operator, was struck by an automobile while crossing a street in Cape Town. She was rushed to Groote Schuur Hospital, where her brain was found to be clinically dead. Her heart was found to be in good condition, and she had the same blood type as Mr. Washkansky, a grocer. In an interview, Dr. Barnard described the crucial moments: ''As soon as the donor died, we opened her chest and connected her to a heart-lung machine, suffusing her body so that we could keep the heart alive. I cut out the heart.

We examined it, and as soon as we found it was normal, we put it in a dish containing solution at 10 degrees centigrade to cool it down further. ''We then transferred this heart to the operating room where we had the patient and we connected it to the heart-lung machine. From the time we cut out the heart it was four minutes until we had oxygenated blood going back to the heart muscle from the donor's heart-lung machine. We then excised the patient's heart.'' The donor heart was sutured in place, the organ was warmed gently and as it approached normal body temperature it started to beat vigorously. But Mr. Washkansky was left open to infection from the large doses of immune suppressing drugs (azathioprine and hydrocortisone) and radiation, and he died of pneumonia. On Jan. 2, 1968, Dr. Barnard caused a sensation in South Africa by transplanting the heart of a young man of mixed race into a retired white dentist, Philip Blaiberg. He survived for 19 months and 15 days, in part because Dr. Barnard's team had reduced the amount of antirejection drugs. Dr.

Barnard also performed heart-lung transplants and ''piggyback'' transplants in which he grafted a second human heart to the patient's damaged heart with the aim of giving it time to heal. Advertisement Continue reading the main story About 2,100 heart transplants are performed in the United States each year. But because of a severe shortage of donors, surgeons are testing self-contained artificial hearts and other mechanical devices to keep patients alive until a donor heart becomes available for transplant. Researchers are also trying to develop cross-species transplants. Dr. Barnard continued operating until 1983, when his once-nimble fingers became gnarled by the rheumatoid arthritis that had been first diagnosed when he was in Minneapolis. In recent years, he spent most of his time in Austria, The Associated Press reported. Dr. Barnard turned to writing, producing an autobiography and several novels that were reviewed politely, though his literary skill never drew the attention his surgical skills attracted. In 1984, he became scientist in residence at Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma City. In 1986, Dr.

Barnard endorsed Glycel, an antiaging skin cream, but its questionable effectiveness tarnished his reputation. Chris Barnard Performs World's First Heart Transplant | Western Cape Government Home > Documents > Public Information > C > Chris Barnard Performs World's First Heart Transplant Chris Barnard Performs World's First Heart Transplant The World's First Heart Transplant Mr Washkansky Groote Schuur Hospital was placed centre stage in the world's spotlight when Professor Christiaan Barnard performed the first human heart transplant on the third of December 1967. Sadly, Mr Louis Washkansky (pictured left) only lived for 18 days, succumbing in the end to pneumonia. His new heart beat strongly to the end. Transplanting Life - the Story of Chris Barnard Chris Barnard Christiaan Neethling Barnard was born in the town of Beaufort West, on the edge of the great Karoo, the dry and arid interior of South Africa, in 1922. His father was a preacher and there were 4 boys in the family. He did well at school , learned music and played sport, and decided on leaving school to study medicine at the University of Cape Town.

The Barnard family was not wealthy but managed to secure a 3 year scholarship. He stayed with his older brother and walked to the University. There was little money to spare and even less time for leisure. Another problem was language, as his mother tongue was Afrikaans, and he had to learn to express himself in English. After 6 years he graduated and did internship and residency at Groote Schuur Hospital and Peninsula Maternity. He then joined a colleague and moved to a small town, Ceres, and married Louwtjie. The seeds of his future career were sown when one of his patients delivered a baby boy with a heart defect which could not be remedied. The baby died, causing him to think deeply about this and foresee the need for remedial surgery and the replacement of heart valves. Back in Cape Town he studied further for his doctorate in Medicine, but heart surgery pre-occupied him. The heart-lung machine was in its infancy in the USA and considered too dangerous to use in surgical procedures. Chris proceeded with research and more study, working in converted rooms at night at minimal expense.

A turning point came when he was offered a chance to work in Minneapolis, USA, under Professor Wagensteen, a great teacher of experimental surgery. The heart lung machine was perfected and this was the gateway to cardiac surgery. The idea of transplanting occurred to Chris. If it was possible with kidneys, why not the heart? After more years of study in USA he returned to SA with a wonderful parting gift from Prof Wagensteen - a heart-lung machine. Groote Schuur Hospital was waiting his return in 1958 to start the first heart unit to perform a cardiac bypass operation. The core of the heart transplant team of the future was formed when the heart lung machine arrived. Chris was again involved in much experimental work and research, and took courses in immunology in USA where immuno -suppressive agents had been developed. Transplant Prelude Back in SA he prepared for kidney transplants and built up surgical expertise. From the legal aspect there had to be clear rules to remove organs from the human body and criterion of death. He performed the first kidney transplant at Groote Schuur on Mrs Edith Black and everything functioned perfectly. It was hailed as a major surgical event in SA.

Professor Val Schrire, who had built up the Cardiac Clinic, was informed by Chris in October 1967:"Everything is ready for a heart transplant. We have the team and we know how to do it." In November Prof Schrire called Chris and told him that there was a suitable patient for a heart transplant. Louis Washkansky was suffering from gross heart failure with a short time to live and was prepared to take the chance. One can say the rest is history. A series of events were set in motion which led to the first human heart transplant, a remarkable feat A young woman, Denise Darvall, had been struck by a car and suffered severe brain damage. Her father did not hesitate when approached for permission to donate her organs. On 3 December 1967 the team emerged from 9 hours of operating and suddenly international attention was focused on Groote Schuur Hospital. The first heart transplant could not have been achieved without the skill and support of a large team - Cardiologists, Radiologists, Anaesthetists, Technicians, Nurses, Immunologists, Pathologists, and in particular, Prof Val Schrire, head of the Cardiac Clinic.

The original theatre where this transplant was performed has been turned into a museum in honour of these pioneers of medicine, and to the first donor and recipient. Professor Christiaan Barnard passed away in Cyprus, Greece on 2 September 2001 from an acute asthma attack. The content on this page was last updated on 15 March 2014 Heart Transplants - Dr C.N. Barnard Heart Transplants Dr. Christiaan N. Barnard 8th November 1922 - 2nd September 2001 Here's that quote from him that we used to produce our promotion postcard " for a dying person, a transplant is not a difficult decision. If a lion chases you to a river filled with crocodiles, you will leap into the water convinced you have a chance to swim to the other side. But you would never accept such odds if there were no lion." A Heart transplant occurs when the malfunctioning heart and muscles are replaced with a functioning heart-usually of a person who just died. It is very complex and time consuming and the availability is usually low. It is done only in emergencies.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be the first person to operate on a human heart and that a life depended on your success or failure? Have you ever wondered how exciting it would be to cause a worldwide breakthrough in medical technology that could end up saving millions of lives? This great feat was accomplished by the surgeon, Dr. Christiaan (Neethling) Barnard from South Africa who was the first person to perform a human heart transplant on December 3, 1967 in Cape Town, South Africa. It was done at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town on Louis Washkansky, an ill South African grocer who would most certainly die without the transplant. Accompany and take part in one of the most important medical performances in the course of history. Experience amazement to the wonders of the human heart as well as fear, hope, pressure and joy for the surgeons and the patient. This important breakthrough introduced to South Africa and to the world another significant way to prolong life. Dr. Barnard is also credited with developing a new design for artificial heart valves, doing heart transplanting on animals, and correcting the problem of the blood supply to the fetus during pregnancy.

With the dedicated and unrelentless efforts of Dr. Barnard and his team ,the survival rates of 50% of the patients to at least 5 years of living after heart surgery. This famous trip will be quite memorable and the medical procedure will leave you fascinated. Christiaan Barnard Biography Beginnings: Christiaan Neethling Barnard was born in the small, sleepy town of Beaufort West in the Western Cape, South Africa on November 8, 1922. His father, Adam Barnard, was a church pastor and his mother Maria played the church organ. Chris was one of five boys. One of his brothers, Abraham, died at the age of five from a heart disease. This may have been the reason for Chris's future walk in life. Many years later, Chris's younger brother Marius would be appointed as his right-hand man in the Departement of Cardiac Surgery at the University of Cape Town. He matriculated from the Beaufort West High School in 1940 and in 1946 completed his Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MB, ChB) at the University of Cape Town.

The family was by no means rich and the young Chris Barnard had to walk five miles to University each day. He was not an outstanding student, but worked hard. His early career: He served his internship at the Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town. He married Aletta Louw in 1948 and they had two children, Andre and Deirdre. After his marriage he moved to the picturesque town of Ceres, in the Western Cape, where he served as a family physician until 1951. He returned to Cape Town in 1951 and worked at the City Hospital as the Senior Resident Medical Officer and the Registrar, Department of Medicine at Groote Schuur Hospital. He continued to study in the evenings and received the degree, Master of Medicine (MMed) from the University of Cape Town in 1953. In the same year he got his MD (Doctor of Medicine) degree from the same university for a dissertation entitled "The treatment of tuberulous Meningitis". After receiving these degrees, he was given a promotion to that of Registrar (resident) in the Department of Surgery, under Professor J. Erasmus, at Groote Schuur Hospital, in Cape Town.

In 1956 he received a Charles Adams Memorial Scholarshop and a Dazian Foundation Bursary for a two year study in the United States of America. Leaving his small family behind, Doctor Chris Barnard travelled to America where he spent, according the man himself, the most fascinating time in his life. He was trained in cardiothoracic surgery at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis in Minnesota and received his Master of Science in Surgery in 1958, for a thesis entitled, "The aortic valve - problems in the fabrication and testing of a prosthetic valve". In the same year he was awarded Doctor of Philosophy afor his dissertation entitled "The aetiology of congenital intestinal atresia". He returned to South Africa armed with a United States public health grant for further research into the field of cardiac surgery. He return to South Africa was triumphant and the young doctor received promotions and accolades. He continued to work at Groote Schuur Hospital, this time as a specialist in cardiothoracic surgery, and was a full-time lecture and Director of Surgical Research at the University of Cape Town.

Three years after his return to South Africa, he was appointed Head of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the teaching hospitals at the University of Cape Town. In 1962,he was promoted to Associate Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Cape Town. A LIFE IS CHANGED FOREVER In 1967 he led the surgical team that performed the first human-to-human heart transplant. (The patient, Louis Washansky died soon after.) Professor Chris Barnard became a household name throughout the world and the unknown surgeon became an international superstar overnight. In 1969 he got divorced and in 1970 married Barbara Zoellner. They had two boys. Barbara was a beautiful woman and the media adored her - her face often adorned the front pages of fashion magazines. His years were spent jet-setting around the world, meeting famous people - from princes and kings to American presidents, and even the Pope. He became known as the "filmstar surgeon". His natural good looks helped this image along, as swarms of celebrities fought to be photographed alongside him. People either loved him, or hated him.

Those who hated him might have been suffering from a bit of jealousy, but the fact remains that although the good doctor could be most charming at times, at other times he acted like a spoilt prima donna who couldn't get his own way. What is not widely known is that he treated hundreds of patients throughout the world, free of charge. He was promoted to Professor of Surgical Science in the Department of Surgery at the University of Cape Town in 1972. 1982 saw his second marriage come to an end - Barbara, it seemed, had tired of the jetsetting lifestyle. After their divorce, Chris Barnard wrote to the largest national newspaper in South Africa, delcaring his love for her. However, Barbara had had enough and they were never reconciled. In 1983, he retired as Head of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery. He spent two years as the Scientist-In-Residence at the Oklahoma Transplantation Insitue at the Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma City in the USA. Over the years he has received many awards over the years, one of which is the title Professor Emeritus (1984). He remarried in 1988.

This time to Karin Setzkorn, a beautiful model and a lady young enough to be his granddaughter. They had two children from this union, but were sadly divorced in the year 2000. The youthful Karin probably felt as though she would always be known as Chris Barnard's wife and in his latter years, the jetsetting professor was not as eager to attend parties and was content to stay at home on his farm in Beaufort West. Karin needed to express herself, to become her own person. Professor Barnard is planning to settle in Austria where he plans to spend the rest of his days in peace. ______ 2nd September 2001, while on holiday in Paphos, Cuprus. Dr Christiaan Barnard collapsed by the hotel pool and died of a suspected heart attack. He was 78. Christiaan Barnard Biography - Childhood, Life Achievements & Timeline Physicians Christiaan Barnard Biography Christiaan Barnard is one name that we associate with the first ever heart transplant. Read more to find out about his childhood, life and timeline.

Quick Facts University of Cape Town University of Minnesota It was on the historical third day of December in the year 1967 when Christiaan Barnard added a new glorious chapter to the pages of medical history with his first human-to-human heart transplant. It was his deep fascination and his sincere personal drive that led him to accomplish this groundbreaking surgery. Born and brought up in South Africa, Barnard hailed from a Dutch family and had an exceptional academic career to boast of. His interests in medicine were dedicated to tubercular meningitis in which he wrote a doctoral thesis in the year 1953. After he was transferred to the historic operation site, Groote Schuur Hospital, he developed his interests in surgery. Barnard was an avant-garde who is credited for conducting and successfully accomplishing human heart transplant. His outspoken talents have made him one among the most significant and influential people in medicine. Barnard raised the bar by conducting a daring experiment at a time when such ideas were unheard of and deemed as dangerous and this achievement brought to the fore the true magnitude of his talent and passion. In his journey, he continued to astound people with major and remarkable achievements. Scroll further to know more!

Early Life And Childhood Christiaan Barnard was born in Beaufort West, South Africa to Adam Barnard, a Dutch descendant and a priest in the Dutch Reformed Church. Barnard lost one of his brothers, Abraham due to cardiac illness when he was five years old. Barnard finished schooling at Beaufort West High School in 1940 and pursued his medical education from the University of Cape Town, Medical School where he attained his MB ChB in 1945. He completed his internship and residency in Cape Town at the Groote Schuur Hospital and was employed as a general practitioner in Ceres, which was a rural town in the Province of the Cape of Good Hope. Later, in 1951, he returned to Cape Town and served at the City Hospital in the post of Senior Resident Medical Officer and also at the Groote Schuur Hospital as a registrar in the Department of Medicine. He received a Master of Medicine in 1953 from the University of Cape Town and the same year acquired a doctorate in medicine (MD) from the same university. His subject of thesis was entitled, ‘The treatment of tuberculous meningitis’.

Christiaan received a two-year scholarship in 1956 to pursue his postgraduate training in cardiothoracic surgery in United States at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. During this time, Barnard met Norman Shumway who devoted her efforts in pioneering research of the first human heart transplant. The years from 1956-1958 in U.S. gifted him with fascinating experiences in his life as he received a Master of Science in Surgery for his dissertation — ‘The aetiology of congenital intestinal atresia’. Being awarded the Doctor of Philosophy degree the same year for his thesis on ‘The aetiology of congenital intestinal atresia’ doubled his joy. Return To South Africa As soon as Christiaan Barnard returned to South Africa, he was offered the post of cardiothoracic surgeon in 1958 at the Groote Schuur Hospital. This marked the establishment of the hospital’s first heart unit. At the University of Cape Town, he was promoted to the post of full time lecturer and as Director of Surgical Research. After three years, he was made the head of the Division of the Cardiothoracic Surgery of the University of Cape Town at the teaching hospitals.

Later, in 1962, he became the Associate Professor at the same university in the Department of Surgery. Here, Barnard worked along with his younger brother, Marius, a student of medicine who was referred to be his right–hand man at the Cardiac Surgery department. Over the course of time, Barnard gathered fame as a brilliant surgeon with remarkable contributions mainly in the treatment of Tetralogy of Fallot and Ebstein’s anomaly, cardiac diseases. In 1972, he was promoted to the post of Professor of Surgical Science at the University of Cape Town in the Department of Surgery. As A Surgeon In 1960, he went to the Soviet Union with the aid of a bursary that he had acquired from the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust. He got a chance to study about the techniques of transplant of the heads and hearts on dogs. After returning to South Africa, Barnard and his brother, Marius, who was also a surgeon conducted various heart transplants in dogs. He performed this with the help of a method called Shumway technique. Towards the end of 1967, Barnard gathered confidence to perform the same on humans and was waiting for an appropriate patient and donor.

Film Star Surgeon After Barnard’s first successful kidney transplant in the United States in 1953, he was all set to accomplish the same in South Africa in October 1967. During this time, several pioneering works were done in this regard — Norman Shumway’s surgical team preparing for a human heart transplant being one among them. At the same time, Barnard encountered a patient willing for a heart transplant, but the non–availability of the right donor was the problem. Thus, an innovative yet surprising miracle took place on 3 December 1967 while Barnard operated a fifty three year Louis Washkansky, an old grocer and replaced his heart with a twenty five year old Denise Darvall. Darvall was a young woman who suffered from brain damage in an accident on 2 December 1967 in Cape Town. Barnard secured permission from her father and conducted the successful transplant. The Success Story The initial public response that he received with regard to this operation was negative and fraught with controversies and ethical oppositions. The public demanded an answer for the death of the donor since patients could live by artificial means for an unlimited period of time.

However, after his successful heart transplant, his eminence was catapulted to great heights and he came to be highly regarded by his patients. Washkansky survived with the new heart for eighteen days after which he developed pneumonia because of the immunosuppressive drugs he was taking. Hence, he was able to state that in order to suppress body’s basic mechanism of rejection of foreign tissue; he should be given powerful antirejection medications. They are known as ‘immune suppressants’ and reduce body’s resistance towards foreign tissue and thereby suppress the overall immune response as well. After the success story of Barnard with his operations, several surgeons took up the same task, but yielded poor results. The percentage of patients who survived was considerably low. Philip Blaiberg, who was Barnard’s second patient survived for 593 days (19 months) and Dirk van Zyl was the patient who lived the longest, surviving for over 23 years with his new heart. Barnard accomplished ten orthotopic transplants and was famous for his heterotropic (double heart) heart transplant in which the patient’s heart is not removed and a new heart is positioned effectively.

He also gathered the fame of being the first to conduct xenograft transplantation, which he performed to save a young girl who was unable to live without artificial life support as her second aortic valve was replaced. Along with these transplants, he also continued his medical researches that comprised of ways to decelerate aging process. The years followed with several recognitions and awards such as Dag Hammarskjold International Prize and Peace Prize, the Milan International Prize for Science, the Kennedy Foundation Award the title of ‘Professor Emeritus’ in 1984. Retirement For a while, he stopped performing transplants and spent more time in research. He retired in 1983, as the Head of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery in Cape Town. Barnard had developed rheumatoid arthritis in his hands that almost restricted his career as a surgeon. After retiring, he worked as Scientist-In-Residence for two years in U.S at the Oklahoma Transplantation Institute and was also an acting consultant in various institutes. Though Barnard was very interested with the works on the anti-aging treatment, his career suffered a downfall in 1986, when he promoted an expensive anti-aging skin cream, Glycel.

Most of his later years was spent in Austria where he setup the Christiaan Barnard Foundation, an effort laid to help the under privileged children of the world. Major Books By Christiaan Barnard 2 Autobiographies - One Life, 1969, and The Second Life, 1993 Arthritis Handbook 50 Ways to a Healthy Heart The Best Medicine Christiaan Barnard's Program for Living With Arthritis The Donor Heart Attack: You Don't Have to Die Personal Life Christiaan Barnard was first married in 1948 to Aletta Gertruida Louw, a nurse whom he met while practicing medicine in Ceres. Deirdre and Andre were born to this couple. Barnard was more bothered about acquiring International fame, which led to their divorce in 1969. Later in 1970, he married Barbara Zoellner who was only 19 years then and they had two children Frederick and Christiaan Jr. In 1982, he divorced Zoellner and got married again in 1988 to Karin Setzkorn, a young model.

Though they had two children, this marriage also did not last long and ended in 2000. "The heart transplant wasn't such a big thing surgically," he said. "The point is I was prepared to take the risk. My philosophy is that the biggest risk in life is not to take the risk." These were his words to the Time magazine just before his death. Barnard passed away while he was on vacation in Paphos, Cyrus when he was 78 years old. He died on 2 September 2001. CHRISTIAAN BARNARD TIMELINE Christiaan Barnard was born on 8 November 1940: Completed schooling at Beaufort West High School 1945: Pursued medical education from University of Cape Town, Medical School obtained his MB ChB 1948: Dr Christiaan Barnard – the work and successes of South Africa's most famous surgeon Doctor of hope Dr Christiaan Barnard Dr Christiaan Barnard is one of South Africa’s favourite sons. The cardiac surgeon made history by performing the world’s first successful human heart transplant at a Cape Town hospital in 1967.

He perfected a medical procedure that has since gone on to save millions of people’s lives around the world. Did you know? Heart surgeon Dr Chris Barnard's brother, Marius, assisted him in the world's first successful heart transplant. Dr Christiaan Barnard always had a passion for the human heart. A renowned heart surgeon, he dedicated his life to understanding the workings of this complicated human pump. Later, as a specialist heart transplant surgeon, Dr Chris Barnard would become the father of heart transplants, known the world-over for his fearless exploration into the world of science. Barnard was a studious young man, completing several medical degrees, including his MB ChB, Masters in Medicine and Doctorate in Medicine before doing his internship and residency at Groote Schuur Hospital. It was really the awarding of a two-year scholarship for postgraduate training in cardiothoracic surgery from the University of Minnesota that put Barnard on his life path. Here he met Norman Shumway, an American doctor who had pioneered heart transplant research, and learnt about the process and pitfalls of this innovative procedure. In 1958, Barnard returned to South Africa and was appointed cardiothoracic surgeon at Groote Schuur Hospital.

The years that followed were marked with many more achievements as Barnard proved himself a skilled surgeon with brilliant insights into the treating of cardiac diseases. After the world's first successful kidney transplant in the USA in 1953, Barnard experimented with canine heart transplants. In October 1967 he performed South Africa's first kidney transplant and then two months later, the word's fist successful human heart transplant. The patient, Louis Washkansky, survived for 18 days, heralding a medical breakthrough. Now a world-renowned surgeon, Dr Christiaan Barnard's success catapulted him into the international limelight. The media loved the South African surgeon who, with his handsome looks and alluring charm, was often referred to as the ‘film star surgeon'. Barnard went on to perform many more transplants and pioneered other cardiac procedures, including heterotopic heart transplants. He retired as a surgeon in 1983 after developing rheumatoid arthritis and dedicated the last years of his life to anti-ageing research. Barnard died of a severe asthma attack while holidaying in Cyprus in 2001.

Related Links Christiaan Neethling Barnard | South African History Online South African History Online Home » Biographies » Christiaan Neethling Barnard Christiaan Neethling Barnard Posted by Anonymous (not verified) on People category: Cyprus,Greece Lives of Courage Professor Chris Barnard led the team which performed the first human-to-human heart transplantation operation at Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town. The son of a missionary, he was born into very modest circumstances in 1922 in Beaufort West on the edge of South Africa’s arid interior region called the Great Karoo. He was one of four sons, one of whom died at a young age due to a heart problem. Learning music and playing sport, young Chris did well at school. After he studied medicine at the University of Cape Town, his first practice was at Ceres, also in the Cape Province. In 1956, he went to Minnesota University to study cardio-thoracic surgery and congenital intestinal atresia and after obtaining an MSc and a PhD he returned to Cape Town in mid-1958. He was appointed lecturer and director of surgical research under Professor J H Louw at Groote Schuur Hospital.

Barnard was responsible for introducing in Cape Town the cardiopulmonary bypass (open-heart) surgery and he pursued the concept of intensive-care nursing of patients following major surgical procedures. In 1960, with the support of a bursary from the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust, he went to the Soviet Union to study transplant techniques of hearts and heads on dogs. The following year he was appointed head of the cardio-thoracic surgery departments at the teaching hospitals of the University of Cape Town. From 1962, he was responsible for the development and introduction of the UCT mitral and aortic valve prostheses, which have since been used for replacement of grossly diseased valves in patients all over the world. Barnard became noted for outstanding surgical results in cases of congenital heart disease. For the world-renowned heart operation, a team of thirty surgeons, anaesthetists, nurses, and technicians was required at Cape Town’s Groote Schuur Hospital. At 5:52 a.m. on Sunday 3 December 1967, Professor Barnard and his team completed the first successful human-to-human heart transplant operation.

They used the heart of a young woman, Denise Darvall, who was killed in a motor accident, on Louis Washkansky , whose heart was grossly enlarged. The operation lasted five hours and the patient survived, but he developed a lung infection and died of pneumonia eighteen days after the epoch-making operation. This had been brought on by the immuno-suppressive therapy, which reduced the possibility of rejection of the donor organ but weakened the defence mechanisms within the body. Professor Barnard performed the first kidney transplant done at Groote Schuur Hospital the same year. The brilliance of his surgery was never disputed, but some medical critics of heart transplants pointed to the high fatality rate among patients and argued that his pioneer work had been premature, as too little was known at the time about the body's rejection of transplanted tissues. Barnard maintained these operations were justified if they lengthened people's lives. Barnard's second heart transplant operation was performed on 2 January 1968 almost a month after the first, this time on Dr Philip Blaaiberg , whose dauntless spirit made him a national hero in his own right. Blaiberg lived for twenty months.

Surgeons worldwide followed Barnard's lead, and by October 1971 recorded heart transplants numbered 178. Twenty-seven patients had survived, but only five of these had lived longer than three years. Forty-year-old Mrs Dorothy Fischer was given a new heart in 1969 and became the longest surviving patient. Shortly after performing his first two historic operations Barnard made it known that he was suffering from arthritis; his hands were becoming crippled at the joints. Professor Barnard has traveled widely giving lectures and interviews. He was proposed for the 1968 Nobel Prize for medicine but did not win the award. He was appointed professor in the department of surgery at the University of Cape Town in 1972. He performed the first double heart transplantation operation at Groote Schuur Hospital on 25 November 1974. FÁªted and honoured with seventy-one fellowships, honorary degrees, awards and decorations from many countries, the media sought him for his talents, zest for life and forthright views were always newsworthy. As an unofficial ambassador for South Africa, he won many friends. He did much to promote insight into the problems of death and dying.

The question of whether to allow a patient to die naturally or to prolong an ebbing life artificially is fraught with clinical and emotional complexities. Although the medical association is officially against euthanasia, Barnard won international respect for his plea to request governments to legitimize it. He always contended that the quality of life should influence the ultimate decision. Barnard was married and divorced three times. In 1948 he married his first wife, Aletta (Louwtjie) Louw. They were divorced in 1969. They had two children, Deidre (now Visser) and a son Andre, who died in 1984. In 1970 he married the 19 year old Barbara Zoellner. Two sons, Frederick and Christiaan were born from the marriage. Barnard and Barbara were divorced in 1982 and in 1988 he was married to Karin Setzkorn, more than forty years his junior. They had two children, Lara and Armin, and were divorced in 2000.

Professor Christiaan Barnard died on 2 September 2001 from a severe asthma attack while on holiday in Cyprus, Greece. References: First human heart transplant - Dec 03, 1967 - HISTORY.com First human heart transplant Publisher A+E Networks On December 3, 1967, 53-year-old Lewis Washkansky receives the first human heart transplant at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa. Washkansky, a South African grocer dying from chronic heart disease, received the transplant from Denise Darvall, a 25-year-old woman who was fatally injured in a car accident. Surgeon Christiaan Barnard, who trained at the University of Cape Town and in the United States, performed the revolutionary medical operation. The technique Barnard employed had been initially developed by a group of American researchers in the 1950s. American surgeon Norman Shumway achieved the first successful heart transplant, in a dog, at Stanford University in California in 1958. After Washkansky’s surgery, he was given drugs to suppress his immune system and keep his body from rejecting the heart.

These drugs also left him susceptible to sickness, however, and 18 days later he died from double pneumonia. Despite the setback, Washkansky’s new heart had functioned normally until his death. In the 1970s, the development of better anti-rejection drugs made transplantation more viable. Dr. Barnard continued to perform heart transplant operations, and by the late 1970s many of his patients were living up to five years with their new hearts. Successful heart transplant surgery continues to be performed today, but finding appropriate donors is extremely difficult. Related Videos

Question: In which city did Dr. Christian Barnard perform the world's first heart transplant?
Answer: Cape Town, South Africa